Arctic Nights
by jin fenghuang
Summary: Zuko/Jee. Arctic nights are long and sometimes any distraction is welcome, even if it seems like a bad idea. And Jee is the king of bad ideas, so who'd be surprised that this particular one involves a Prince? Set before the series premiere. Zuko is 16.


The days were still short this close to the Arctic Circle, with only the ship's bell to mark the true hours of the day. The bell struck twenty-hundred hours. Jee opened the hatch and stepped out into the cold dark polar night, and quickly around the corner.He shivered in the icy wind, pressing deeper into the alcove, out of sight and away from at least some of the biting wind, but not out of earshot. And he listened. He calmed his breathing and gathered his chi to warm himself, waiting, listening for that faint creak of the hatch opening, the soft, familiar tread of seal-hide soles.

He should just go back to his cabin. Yes, that would be the wiser option. The sane option. But Jee was not known for either, and what had wisdom or sanity ever done for him? Ended him up here, in the freezing cold arctic sea, on this pitiful excuse of a royal ship, on a wild goose chase, that's exactly what, Jee would have admitted to anyone willing to buy him the next drink. So why was he here, waiting in the cold for what was definitely the worst idea in his long history of bad ones? A chance to feel a hand not his own on his cock, he thought grimly, that's exactly what. And it had been long, too damn long, since anyone had shown any kind of interest, so he'd figured, why not?

And then finally, after he'd had to bend to keep his toes and fingers from getting numb, the door creaked open and a sliver of light spilled out into the night. It snuffed out the stars, the artificial light too bright against the endless northern night. He should have averted his eyes, kept his night vision. Jee sighed, oh well, for that, too, it was too late now. Afterimages danced merrily in front of his eyes as Jee counted the soft steps under his breath, waiting for the right moment.

More sensing then seeing he reached out with his hand, his fingers finding the edges of a uniform shoulder plate, sliding under, pulling. There was a muffled gasp, and Jee smiled. Gotcha.

Zuko let out a soft 'oh' as he was pulled against Jee's body, their armour making a dull thud as their upper bodies collided. The surprised and more than a bit annoyed '_Lieutenant_' only ever made it half out of Zuko's mouth, with Jee spinning him around and pressing his lips to the Prince's before Zuko could do something stupid, like talk. 

Really, he liked the Prince much better this way, even if Zuko's fingers dug in a bit too hard into the back of his neck and Zuko kissed back with a bit too much teeth. The cold seared the corners of Jee's mouth, and he tried to concentrate, to gather his chi, adding just a little more warmth to his breath than a normal body would produce.

The bulk of their armour kept contact to a teasing minimum, barely close enough to feel each other's heat, yet nowhere as close as Jee would have liked. It just figured that anything involving Zuko would come with a healthy helping of frustration.

But there was fire in Zuko's kisses, mimicking what Jee had started seconds ago, yet out of control. Untamed, blazing heat that tasted of desire. Not that Jee was complaining - for once - about the force of Zuko's temper. In fact, he rather preferred this outlet to the other options.

Jee's hands searched and found the belt of Zuko's trousers, the metal bitingly cold under his touch. He fumbled with the clasp for several awkward moments before Zuko broke the kiss and reached down to help him unfasten it.

'Get on with it, Lieutenant.' His voice was a sharp, commanding hiss in the silence of the night, and Jee kissed him again, partly to shut him up, partly because he rather liked the way Zuko's lips parted eagerly for his, letting him take the lead in a way that the Prince would never have allowed in broad daylight.

Jee's fingers slid past the belt, into Zuko's trousers, pushing them down over the Prince's rather nice ass. Jee's thumbs brushed over sharp hip bones, his fingers sliding backwards, down and then squeezed. Zuko gasped low in his throat, answering with a push and a moan. Jee had to hold on tight, still the Prince's hips to make sure that neither of them would bump valuable anatomy into sharp, mood destroying bits of armour.

Feeling the hot, hard slide of the Prince's erection against his own made Jee tighten his grip. The scalding, sliding heat of their tongues and the biting coldness of the arctic night was almost too much sensation to bear, and Jee deepened their kiss to swallow the moan that was trying to escape. Getting discovered now, when he was so close to what he'd been dreaming of for months, would be most frustrating.

Jee broke the kiss, panting hard. 'Stay!' He pushed the Prince against the wall, dropping to his knees onto the cold, hard metal deck. He would not embarrass himself in front of a sixteen year old and come in his pants. If sore knees where the price to pay, well, then, so be it.

Zuko, for once, seemed to know what was good for him and did as he was told. 

Jee looked up at the Prince, trying to make out his features in the darkness. Zuko's head was tilted back against the metal wall, his mouth slightly open, his eyes closed, giving the normally snarling, scowling face an almost serene glow.

Who are you thinking about? Jee thought with a sudden surge of jealousy. Some courtier back at the Caldera? A pretty face in an Earth Kingdom port?

Jee dug his nails into Zuko's bare flesh. 'Look at me!'

Amber eyes opened and focused on him, and Jee had to look away, suddenly not ready to meet the Prince's intense gaze, not ready to see what might be there, or, worse, not. He yanked at Zuko's loincloth instead, getting it fully out of the way.

Zuko gasped at the sudden cold air, and Jee licked his lips in anticipation. There was a certain heady power, Jee thought, in being someone's first. Who'd have thought that all it took was the prospect of a mouth on his cock to tame the shrew?

'Don't look away,' Jee commanded, Zuko's intense stare a delicious aphrodisiac all on its own. Then he closed his lips over the tip of Zuko's cock.

Zuko went rigid, and the sliver of a moan, escaping through clenched teeth, echoed loudly in the night. Jee stilled, heart pounding, ears straining for the sound of footsteps.

Only the wind howled in the night.

It had been a while, too long, even Jee would admit, since he'd sucked anyone's cock - never mind having his own sucked - and while he might lack finesse, he was rather certain that Zuko would not know, nor care. He slid his tongue along the underside of Zuko's cock, the tip curling up, tracing the thick protruding vein. The resulting indrawn breath and thrust of Zuko's hips, his moans and demanding fingers more than told Jee that he must be doing something right.

One of Jee's hands reached out, cradling Zuko's balls, his index finger teasing the tender spot behind them, while his other hand rubbed against his own erection. The rough fabric of his uniform pants maddeningly good against his own need.

One of the Prince's hands slid into this hair, holding him fast. Jee dimly thought that he should be annoyed at the commanding gesture, but Zuko's hot palms and the way his fingers caressed his skull felt too good to give up. Jee started sliding his mouth up and down Zuko's cock. Zuko let out a needy, breathless whimper, and hot come spilled down Jee's throat before he could pull away.

Never having been that fond of the taste of come, Jee pushed against Zuko's hips, but the hand in his hair tightened to a vice-like red-hot grip, holding him where he was. Jee spluttered and swallowed around the bitter taste and the insistent thrusts of the Prince's hips, cursing the fact that bending against royalty outside of an Agni Kai would get him a court-martialled at the very least. Never mind that he had no one to blame but himself for being in this position in the first place. He should have known that the little bastard would be selfish.

When Zuko finally let go, Jee spat on the deck, his own need and anger a nearly tangible, demanding presence.

'That wasn't nice!' Jee snapped as he got up from the deck. His knees protested and he supported himself on the metal wall, trapping Zuko in the alcove. If this was how the little bastard wanted to play, fine. Rough it was. Jee knew about rough, had been on the receiving end more than once. He'd rather enjoy that pretty little mouth around his own cock, and that ponytail just begged to be grabbed, and – Jee's cock twitched at the image. Oh yes, this was going to be good.

'My turn now. On your knees, boy!' Jee growled before pulling Zuko into a demanding kiss. Let the brat get a taste of his own come and see how he liked it! Zuko tried to pull away, but Jee pressed on, beyond caring, enjoying the thrill of the struggle. He pushed at Zuko's shoulders, hoping the little bastard would get the hint and kneel without too much of a fuss. Zuko bit his lip, and Jee could taste the metallic flavour of his own blood.

'Don't think you can give me commands, Lieutenant!' There was a scared quiver to Zuko's usual terse tone that made Jee look up into wide, frightened eyes. Shit. Suddenly, he felt all kinds of ashamed. Surely the brat didn't think he would - that anyone would think that of him, could truly be afraid of him... Jee closed his eyes and swallowed hard. He'd done many things in his life that he wasn't particularly proud of, but never that. Never. He liked his partners willing, damn it.

He took a half-step back from where Zuko had finished pulling his trousers back up and was watching him with suspicious eyes.

'Sir… I-' Jee forced himself to look at the Prince, feeling that he owed Zuko that much. How the hell had he managed to get himself into a situation where he was truly ashamed of his own actions? But damn, with all that bluster and posturing, it really was easy to forget just how young his Commander was. Jee mentally kicked himself. He really had fucked this up. He tried to take solace in the small fact that he was at least man enough to own up. Jee steadied his voice and swallowed his pride. 'I apologize, sir. I didn't mean to be so rough.'

Zuko gave him a curt nod. 'Don't do it again.'

Jee let out a breath he hadn't been aware he had been holding. 'We good now, sir?'

Zuko nodded again, and Jee noticed the way he was looking at his lips, as if he wanted Jee kiss him but didn't know how to ask for it. It rather surprised him that Zuko would want to after what had happened just now, but gift rhinos and all... Jee was not about to question this turn of events. He leaned closer, his lips brushing the Prince's, making it clear that he was willing but not taking charge. Jee figured that if he wanted this to become a repeat arrangement, whatever happened now would have to be on Zuko's terms.

Breath hot with desire swept over Jee's face, and then Zuko leaned forward. Chapped lips closed over Jee's, and he could feel the tentative tease of Zuko's hot, wet tongue. Jee moaned and opened his lips, letting the tip of Zuko's tongue touch his own, deepening the kiss into something more satisfying than this hesitant exploration. His cock was taking a new interest in the proceedings, and he moaned, drawing the Prince closer.

Zuko's hand slid down his stomach reached for the hardness between Jee's legs, and Jee sighed, rubbing against it eagerly. Yes, finally they were getting somewhere.

He broke the kiss, stooping a little so that he could press his forehead to the Prince's, looking down at him into those wide amber eyes. He'd never seen them this close before. He briefly wondered what it was like to be a direct descendent of Agni, to have that power flow in your blood. Jee ran his hand over the high collar of Zuko's uniform, feeling the briefest touch of silk on the tips of his fingers. He shuddered with the delight of the forbidden. Fucking someone above his station had been something he'd wanked about ever since he'd first discovered his older brother's collection of yellow scrolls. Who'd have thought he'd actually get to…

The wind was still icy, even in the presence of two firebenders. Jee leaned in a bit closer, his hand sliding up from Zuko's collar toward his chin, teasing the tender spot behind his ear.

And then it all went wrong. Zuko's fingers squeezed a little too tightly, too eagerly over Jee's cock. Jee flinched, his fingers slipping, digging into the leathery-scared flesh of the Prince's scar.

'I think I'll have to teach you…' Jee began. He barely noticed his mistake before Zuko's eyes went wide and his body turned to stone.

'_You_ don't have the right to teach me anything, _Lieutenant_,' Zuko hissed. The palm of his hand hit Jee squarely in the chest, robbing him of breath and making him stumble backwards, arms flailing. His foot got caught by the tip of one of the Prince's boots, upsetting what little balance he had had.

Jee fell, still half aroused, and more than a bit surprised, into the arctic night until his back hit the iced-over railing and he could hear the dark water churning below. Jee's fingers tried and failed to find purchase on the freezing cold metal. He scrambled for support, his feet kicking futilely at the frozen deck, only to end up on his back like a stranded lion-turtle. When he managed to sit up again, his heart still thumping with the adrenaline of the fall and the sight of the dark foam-crested waves below, it was the screeching of the hatch that snapped him back into reality. Zuko had left. The last glimpse he caught of him retreating was Zuko's dark outline, back rigid against the brightness of the corridor inside.

Jee blinked. What by Agni was wrong with that kid? One second they were sharing a rather nice kiss, Zuko's warm body pressed quite satisfyingly against his, then the next the little bastard had apparently decided that he'd had enough of Jee, leaving him all high and stranded with a rock-hard erection and a sore back.

Jee growled under his breath and closed his hand over his own cock, bringing himself off with a few well-practiced unsatisfying tugs. Then he leaned his head back against the railing, long legs stretched out in front of him, and watched the ocean spray freeze in tiny glittering moon-filled droplets on his clothes. He promised himself that if he was ever stupid or desperate enough to take the Prince up on a similar offer, he'd know who'd suck whose cock first.

.

.

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Notes:

1. 'Yellow' is a euphemism in Chinese meaning 'porn/dirty' e.g. 'yellow pictures' are 'pin-ups'.

2. In ancient times there were rather strict rules on who could wear what (at times down to the color and design). For the sake of the fic: Silk is reserved for nobility, thus Jee not being allowed to wear it.


End file.
